Erignathus barbatus

The bearded seal (Erignathus barbatus), also called the square flipper seal, is a medium-sized pinniped that is found in and near to the Arctic Ocean. It gets its generic name from two Greek words (eri and gnathos) that refer to its heavy jaw. The other part of its Linnaean name means bearded and refers to its most characteristic feature, the conspicuous and very abundant whiskers. When dry, these whiskers curl very elegantly, giving the bearded seal a 'raffish' look. Bearded seals are the largest northern phocid. They have been found to weigh as much as much as 300 kg with the females being the largest. However, male and female bearded seals are not very dimorphic. The only member of the genus Erignathus, the bearded seal is unique in that it is an intermediate. Bearded seals belong to the family Phocidae which contains two subfamilies: Phocinae and Monachinae. The bearded seal possesses characteristics of both of these subfamilies. Fossils first described in 2002 indicated that, during the Pleistocene epoch, bearded seals ranged as far south as South Carolina. Distinguishing features of this earless seal include square fore flippers and thick bristles on its muzzle. Adults are greyish-brown in colour, darker on the back; rarely with a few faint spots on the back or dark spots on the sides. Occasionally the face and neck are reddish brown. Bearded seal pups are born with a greyish-brown natal fur with scattered patches of white on the back and head. The bearded seal is unique in the subfamily Phocinae in having two pairs of teats, a feature it shares with monk seals. Bearded seals reach about 2.1 to 2.7 m (6 ft 11 in to 8 ft 10 in) in nose-to-tail length and from 200 to 430 kg (441 to 948 lb) in weight. The female seal is larger than the male, meaning that they are sexually dimorphic. Bearded seals, along with ringed seals, are a major food source for polar bears. They are also an important food source for the Inuit of the Arctic coast. The Inuit language name for the seal is ugjuk (plural: ugjuit) or oogrook or oogruk. The Inuit preferred the ringed seal for food and light; the meat would be eaten and the blubber burnt in the kudlik (stone lamp). The skin of the bearded seal is tougher than regular seal and was used to make shoes, whips, dog sled harnesses, to cover a wooden frame boat, the Umiak and in constructing summer tents known as tupiq. The body fat content of a bearded seal is about 25–40%.